Huawei’s New OS Might Replace Android

Huawei’s new OS might replace Android. You probably already heard about the Huawei banned that Huawei has been blacklisted from working with US companies including Google because of apparent security concerns. In addition, it already had a massive effect in the UK too. Huawei was cut from the 5G launch lineup and Huwawei has literally just canceled its recent laptop launch due to the inability to supply.

How Huawei Can Compete in the Open Market Without Working With Google?

It all starts in a Villa in Shenzhen in 2012 where there was a behind closed doors top-secret meeting with a group of high-level Huawei executives. They decided that a new priority Operating System should be built, presumably that the company was growing rapidly at that time and they couldn’t let their entire fate rest just on Andriod’s shoulder.

Within months they created a specialized zone inside the company to work on this project. Internally knows as “Ark OS”. At that time they even had guards on duty protecting the doors and any workers there were not allowed to use their personal mobile phone.

The Ark OS is not released yet but this operating system is now a very real thing and it’s going to be called “Hong Meng OS” in China and “Huawei Oak OS” in other regions.

How Fast Huawei’s New OS Will be?

The most interesting part about Huawei’s new OS is that it could be up to 60 % faster than Andriod. Nonetheless, it’s clear that Huawei has been taken by surprise here, even though they’ve been working on this project for years, as the band came suddenly into action, but it’s still not ready.

Now, this is one of Huawei’s top priorities and the CEO of the company has announced that it will be available as early as fall this year which coincides with when they might launch the mate 30 Pro.

Moreover, according to a job listing Huawei has been hiring full-time engineers to work on a secret operating system that apparently focuses on tying in of 5G augmented reality and autonomous self-driving vehicles and so fact that it could be coming so soon and the fact that it could be such a real competitor to Andriod creates a really interesting dynamic between Huawei and Google.

How Huawei’s OS Works?

Huawei can’t do business directly with Google, but you can see in the early screenshots of this operating system that the weather app is compatible with the Android Green Alliance. Indeed, it’s not Android but it’s looking like it’s at least in part based on Android and can run Android apps.

In other words, it’s Android without Google services. So, no Google Play Store, no Google Maps and no Gmail and also no security updates from Google or Google Play protect. These all sounds unappealing but if any company can work around it, it’s Huawei.

Alternative Android App Store (Huawei AppGallery)

Aptoid is an alternative Android app store with over 800,000 apps and if something like that can exist then Huawei can have an alternative Android app store too.

Actually, Huawei already has a store called AppGallery, and they have started emailing developers to ask them to move their apps onto it. Certainly, all the developers will do it because Huawei sells millions of phones and developers don’t want to miss out on that market, besides because Hong Meng OS can run Android applications so nothing needs to be recorded. The developers just need to get their application and upload it on the Huawei’s store.

Huawei’s New OS Might Replace Android

Are you amazed by Huawei’s OS? What is potentially even more interesting is that apparently Xiaomi, ViVO, and Oppo are also testing Huawei’s OS (Hong Meng OS) on their phones. Maybe they also want to diversify it the same way that Huawei did.

To be fair, if the operating system as fast as Huawei is claiming then who wouldn’t to try it once. So, if these companies also choose to start using Hong Meng then over 1/3 of the smartphones in the world could shift to this new operating system.

Do you think Google want this happen?

Google doesn’t want this to happen. Indeed, Google doesn’t want Huawei to have its own operating system and they don’t want Huawei to have its own store, because this creates fragmentation. As it stands apart from iOS, Google has an almost complete monopoly on smartphones.

Pretty much every single phone runs on Android Google makes money from it. It makes money from the Play Store, it makes money every time someone subscribes to Google Play music and it makes money from the adverts inside Google maps.

So right now Google is actually trying to convince the US government that instead of actually saving themselves from a security risk by banning Huawei, they would actually be putting themselves in one. Their logic is if Huawei starts pumping out devices with a completely new operating system then these phones would be more vulnerable to malware and they won’t have Google’s protection in them.

Suppose you are in the US on your Samsung and you send a message to someone in the UK who’s on a Huawei phone infected with malware. In that scenario, there’s a pretty good chance that your message can be read by any malware on that device even without using the Huawei yourself. The security of the whole mobile phone, the ecosystem could be at risk. That doesn’t mean this would be the case, it’s just the argument that Google is using to try and stop Huawei.

Hence, there could be three possible outcomes to this whole situation.

1. Google pleading the US government combined with the mounting political pressure might make the US retract the ban on Huawei which would allow them to use full Android just as they used to.

2. Huawei is really trying to compromise here. They have actually pitched a no-spy deal to the US government saying that they could completely lock their phones up so that there was no way a backdoor could be used to retrieve US information. It’s completely possible then that the US could instead of retracting its ban, add exceptions to it. Huawei would be allowed to carry on dealing with certain suppliers under certain conditions.

3. There is no resolution and Huawei carries on with its plan B. Oak OS becomes a thing around the globe and you might start seeing it as soon as this year.

Bottom Lines:

You should be able to expect statements from the owner and from Huawei pretty soon and in the meantime all we can do is hope. Let’s face it even if you wouldn’t go near a Huawei phone, just then being in the smartphone market, raising the bar creating new things, it pushes the industry forward. Always more competition is better for the consumer.